Source: Nelson Mandela on dialysis, but responsive

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Well-wishers sing outside the hospital where former South African President Nelson Mandela is being treated in Pretoria, South Africa, on Sunday, June 30.

Hide Caption

1 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – South African military veterans dance in support outside the hospital on June 30.

Hide Caption

2 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – A man prays at the tribute wall for Mandela outside the hospital on June 30.

Hide Caption

3 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Veterans pray on June 30.

Hide Caption

4 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Members of the Ethiopian Church pray near the hospital on June 30.

Hide Caption

5 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Supporters gather outside the hospital on Thursday, June 27.

Hide Caption

6 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Mandela's granddaughter Ndileka Mandela and other family members collect flowers left by well-wishers on June 27.

Hide Caption

7 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – A member of Mandela's family is swamped by the media on June 27 while collecting flowers from well-wishers.

Hide Caption

8 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Hare Krishna followers show their support for Mandela by singing and playing drums on June 27 as they march past the hospital.

Hide Caption

9 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Members of the African National Congress Youth League wave a banner from their bus as they drive to join the gathering on June 27.

Hide Caption

10 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – A youth league member wishes Mandela well in a banner on a fence near the hospital on June 27.

Hide Caption

11 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Supporters view and photograph get-well messages and other mementos placed on a fence near the hospital on June 27.

Hide Caption

12 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Well-wishers sing songs by candlelight outside the hospital on June 27.

Hide Caption

13 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Well-wishers add messages of support to the growing collection on June 26.

Hide Caption

14 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Messages for Nelson Mandela – A note, seen on June 26, tied around the neck of a teddy bear reads: "Thanks for everything you've done for our country."

Hide Caption

15 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Florence Nyadzani leads those gathered in songs and cheers of support outside the hospital on June 25.

Hide Caption

16 of 17

Crowds gather to support Mandela17 photos

Crowds gather to support Mandela – Messages, paintings, cards and flowers are posted to a wall outside the hospital on June 25.

Hide Caption

17 of 17

Story highlights

Source says Mandela isn't in a vegetative state and opens his eyes when people talk to him

He has been getting kidney dialysis, the source says

Court papers said his family was last week considering whether to take him off life support

The anti-apartheid icon has been hospitalized for nearly a month

Former South African President Nelson Mandela has been getting kidney dialysis and opens his eyes when people talk to him, a source with direct knowledge of the situation said Friday.

Mandela, who is on life support, is not in a vegetative state, the source said.

The anti-apartheid icon has been hospitalized for nearly a month for a recurring lung infection.

Considered the founding father of South Africa's democracy, Mandela became an international figure while enduring 27 years in prison for fighting against apartheid, the country's system of racial segregation. He emerged from prison in 1990 and became the nation's first black president four years later.

JUST WATCHED

Tutu scolds feuding Mandela family

MUST WATCH

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Nelson Mandela, the prisoner-turned-president who reconciled South Africa after the end of apartheid, died on December 5, 2013. He was 95.

Hide Caption

1 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela became president of the African National Congress Youth League in 1951.

Hide Caption

2 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela poses for a photo, circa 1950.

Hide Caption

3 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela poses in boxing gloves in 1952.

Hide Caption

4 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela in the office of Mandela & Tambo, a law practice set up in Johannesburg by Mandela and Oliver Tambo to provide free or affordable legal representation to black South Africans.

Hide Caption

5 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – From left: Patrick Molaoa, Robert Resha and Mandela walk to the courtroom for their treason trial in Johannesburg.

Hide Caption

6 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela married his second wife, social worker Winnie Madikizela, in 1958. At the time, he was an active member of the African National Congress and had begun his lifelong commitment to ending segregation in South Africa.

Hide Caption

7 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Nelson and Winnie Mandela raise their fists to salute a cheering crowd upon his 1990 release from Victor Verster Prison. He was still as upright and proud, he would say, as the day he walked into prison 27 years before.

Hide Caption

8 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – A jubilant South African holds up a newspaper announcing Mandela's release from prison at an ANC rally in Soweto on February 11, 1990. Two days later, more than 100,000 people attended a rally celebrating his release from jail.

Hide Caption

9 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela and Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda arrive at an ANC rally on March 3, 1990, in Lusaka, Zambia. Mandela was elected president of the ANC the next year.

Hide Caption

10 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – After his release in 1990, Mandela embarked on a world tour, meeting U.S. President George H.W. Bush at the White House in June.

Hide Caption

11 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – At his Soweto home on July 18, 1990, Mandela blows out the candles on his 72nd birthday cake. It was the first birthday he celebrated as a free man since the 1960s.

Hide Caption

12 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela and his wife react to supporters during a visit to Brazil at the governor's palace in Rio De Janeiro, on August 1, 1991.

Hide Caption

13 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – South African President Frederik de Klerk, right, and Mandela shared a Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for their work to secure a peaceful transition from apartheid rule.

Hide Caption

14 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela votes for the first time in his life on March 26, 1994.

Hide Caption

15 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – On April 27, 1994, a long line of people snake toward a polling station in the black township of Soweto outside of Johannesburg in the nation's first all-race elections.

Hide Caption

16 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela in Mmabatho for an election rally on March 15, 1994.

Hide Caption

17 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela was elected president in the first open election in South African history on April 29, 1994. He's pictured here taking the oath at his inauguration in May, becoming the nation's first black president.

Hide Caption

18 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela, left, cheers as Springbok Rugby captain Francois Pienaar holds the Webb Ellis trophy high after winning the World Cup Rugby Championship in Johannesburg on June 24, 1995.

Hide Caption

19 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – After one term as president, Mandela stepped down. Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki, at right, was sworn in as his replacement in June 1999.

Hide Caption

20 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela sits outside his former prison cell on Robben Island on November 28, 2003, ahead of his AIDS benefit concert at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town. He was sent to the infamous prison five miles off the coast of South Africa, where he spent 18 of his 27 years behind bars.

Hide Caption

21 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela shows something to a group of international journalists visiting the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg in May 2004.

Hide Caption

22 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela sits with his wife, Graca Machel, and his grandchildren at his son's funeral on January 15, 2005. He disclosed that his son, Makgatho Lewanika Mandela, had died of AIDS and said the disease should be given publicity so people would stop viewing it as extraordinary.

Hide Caption

23 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – The "46664 Arctic" benefit concert was held in Tromso, Norway, on June 11, 2005. 46664 was Mandela's identification number in prison. Here, artists who performed at the event surround him.

Hide Caption

24 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela attends an HIV/AIDs concert in Johannesburg on February 17, 2005.

Hide Caption

25 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Former U.S. President Bill Clinton leans down to whisper to former South African President Nelson Mandela during a visit to the Nelson Mandela Foundation on July 19, 2007, in Johannesburg.

Hide Caption

26 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – A bronze statue of Mandela was unveiled in Parliament Square in London on August 29, 2007. The 9-foot statue faces the Houses of Parliament.

Hide Caption

27 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela leaves the InterContinental Hotel after a photoshoot with celebrity photographer Terry O'Neil on June 26, 2008, in London.

Hide Caption

28 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Mandela meets in 2009 with international children as part of his 46664 Foundation.

Hide Caption

29 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Nelson Mandela and his third wife, Graca Machel, arrive at the 2010 World Cup before the final match between Netherlands and Spain on July 11, 2010, at Soccer City Stadium in Soweto.

Hide Caption

30 of 31

The evolution of Nelson Mandela31 photos

The evolution of Nelson Mandela – Then-U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets with Mandela at his home in Qunu, South Africa, on August 6, 2012.

Hide Caption

31 of 31

EXPAND GALLERY

He was admitted to a Pretoria hospital on June 8, and since then, varying accounts of his medical condition have emerged.

His health had declined so sharply last week that his family was considering whether to take him off life support before his condition improved, a court document released Thursday revealed.

The document, known as a certificate of urgency, was filed by his family on June 26 in a burial dispute.

It stated that Mandela, 94, had "taken a turn for the worst and that the Mandela family have been advised by the medical practitioners that his life support machine should be switched off."

"Rather than prolonging his suffering, the Mandela family is exploring this option as a very real probability," it added.

The following day, however, South African President Jacob Zuma announced that Mandela's condition had improved from critical to critical but stable.

Another document filed by Mandela's family in the burial dispute described his health as "perilous" and stated that fears that his death is drawing near were justified.

Mandela remained in critical but stable condition Thursday, Zuma's office reported after he visited Mandela. It denied reports that Mandela was in a "vegetative state."

The court battle pitted 16 members of Mandela's family against his grandson, Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela, also known as Mandla, over where three of the anti-apartheid icon's deceased children should be buried.

In a statement carried by the South African Press Association late Thursday, Tutu urged the family not to "besmirch" Mandela's name in his last days.

Investigators have been gathering evidence against Mandla Mandela in a "grave tampering" case and expect to hand it to a senior prosecutor next week, Mthatha police said Friday, according to the South African Press Association.